Development of a generic surface plasmon resonance optical chemical sensor system using specific receptors for monitoring phenols and related drugs, herbicides and allergens

Información del proyecto

Identificador del acuerdo de subvención: IC15960822

Proyecto cerrado

Fecha de inicio 1 Enero 1997

Fecha de finalización 31 Diciembre 1999

Financiado con arreglo a

• Specific research, technological development and demonstration programme in the field of cooperation with third countries and international organizations, 1994-1998

Coste total

Sin datos

Aportación de la UE

€ 200 000,00

Coordinado por

University of Kent at Canterbury
United Kingdom

Objetivo

Foreseen Results

Finally, prototype instruments will be made and tested with a view to producing both practical personal monitors and more sophisticated multi-purpose measurement instruments. The program will also take advantage of the unique opportunity afforded by the Chemistry Department at the University of Kent to offer young CCE/NIS research students the chance to work in a community of many other young European students. The Department has been at the forefront of ECTS and ERASMUS programmes in chemistry, and has typically 40 exchange students from EU countries each year. The opportunity for young CCE/NIS students to become part of this network and experience the standards, attitudes and aspirations of their counterparts in other parts of Europe has an important role in stabilising RTD potential.
This proposal addresses section 8.3 Measurement and Testing for the needs of society in Health and Safety, by using novel optical methods of chemical sensing in association with designed molecular receptors. The project will use selective organic reagents immobilised on gold films, with surface plasmon resonance (SPR) as the optical transduction method, to develop a standard instrument configuration capable of application to a wide range of chemical measurement tasks. This will significantly improve comparability of measurement methods and reference exposure data for occupational health and safety. The key to effective use of SPR as a generic yet selective chemical sensing method is the synthesis of specific receptor molecules which can easily be immobilised on the surface of metal films in well-defined orientations which make available their receptor sites to analytes in the surrounding medium. This proposal combines a highly innovative method of SPR detection using a Schottky barrier method, developed in Moscow, with the necessary microelectronics skills (for sensor instrument development) of the Belorussian group and the required synthetic chemistry and molecular recognition skills of a large group in Nijmegen and the sensor development experience of the group in Canterbury which has excellent SPR sensor test facilities and proven links with two of the other three groups.

The Schottky barrier method consists of using a diffraction grating rather than a prism to couple the incident light to SPR. This grating is made on a silicon substrate and coated with the thin gold film required for SPR, thus producing an Au-Si Schottky barrier. At the resonance angle, incident light excites surface plasmon polaritons in the gold film generating a photovoltage across the Schottky barrier, which is extremely sensitive to surface chemical reactions. This voltage can be measured by electrical contacts to the Au and Si layers, eliminating the need for external photodetectors.
Selective receptors that can be immobilised on solid substrates will be designed and synthesised to produce a change in their optical properties upon binding of a guest molecule so that this interaction can be registered by SPR. The work will commence with further development of an SPR phenol sensor based on a sulphurcontaining "clip" molecule previously synthesised by the Nijmegen group, immobilised on a gold coated substrate. Phenol release into water supplies caused a serious incident recently in the town of Ufa in the Bashkiria region of Russia, and the availability of a phenol sensor will provide warning and cut off contaminated supplies before they enter the domestic system in future.
Simultaneously, related receptor molecules will be optimised for the detection of other aromatic compounds, including drugs (e.g paracetamol), herbicides (e.g. atrazine) and other related molecules including aromatic allergens.

Ámbito científico (EuroSciVoc)

• ciencias naturales › ciencias físicas › física de la materia condensada › cuasipartículas
• ingeniería y tecnología › ingeniería eléctrica, ingeniería electrónica, ingeniería de la información › ingeniería electrónica › sensores › sensores ópticos
• ciencias naturales › ciencias físicas › electromagnetismo y electrónica › microelectrónica
• ciencias naturales › ciencias químicas › química orgánica › compuestos aromáticos
• ciencias médicas y de la salud › ciencias de la salud › salud pública y medio ambiental › seguridad e higiene en el trabajo

Programa(s)

• FP4-INCO - Specific research, technological development and demonstration programme in the field of cooperation with third countries and international organizations, 1994-1998

Tema(s)

• 01020803 - Health and safety

Convocatoria de propuestas

Datos no disponibles

Régimen de financiación

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinador

University of Kent at Canterbury

• Aportación de la UE: Sin datos
• Dirección: CT2 7NH Canterbury ; Reino Unido
• Coste total: Sin datos

Participantes (2)

Institute of General Physics - Russian Academy of Sciences

Rusia

• Aportación de la UE: Sin datos
• Dirección: 38,Vavilov Street ; 117942 Moskva
• Coste total: Sin datos

Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen - Stichting Katholieke Universiteit

Países Bajos

• Aportación de la UE: Sin datos
• Dirección: Toernooiveld ; 6500 GL Nijmegen
• Coste total: Sin datos